Berkeley, California (Wednesday, April 09, 2014) - Two new charging stations for electric vehicles just opened in Berkeley, where the number of electric vehicles is surging.

The new charging stations at the Whole Foods in South Berkeley include a DC Fast Charging station that can add 40 miles of range to an electric vehicle in about 10 minutes. About 350 electric vehicles are registered to Berkeley residents and businesses, an increase of over 70 percent in the last six months.

Whole Foods, on Telegraph at Ashby Avenues, is the first business to participate in a City of Berkeley pilot program to ease the permitting and installation of EV charging stations. The Non-Residential Plug-In Electric Vehicle Charging Station Pilot Program has staff who personally guide businesses through the process. Applications will be accepted through the end of the year.

The City of Berkeley supports the spread of EV infrastructure and the use of electric vehicles as part of the Climate Action Plan's goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 33% by 2020. Vehicle travel currently generates over half of our community's greenhouse gas emissions and driving an EV in Berkeley in place of conventional automobile can reduce the greenhouse emissions associated with its travel by as much as 70%.

The new EV charging stations installed at the Whole Foods are operated by NRG eVgo and offer DC fast charging and Level 2 charging. Shoppers can use a credit card or subscribe to one of NRG eVgo's charging plans to pay for charging at Whole Foods EV charging stations.